I have a 1977 Ranchero and I’d like to make the AC work. What’s the cheapest way to do this?

I was thinking of getting an AC compressor from another newer car at the junkyard (rather then paying 500 bucks for the old heavy version that came stock) and having some custom AC lines made up for it. What’s a good fit?

How do I check if the condenser and evaporation and expansion valve are good? I remember one of them goes bad after being exposed to air or moisture for too long? I live in CA, not much humidity here.

 

I have been researching doing this same thing on my 78. The under dash stuff (evaporator) is probably good. It will have to be flushed out with A/C flushing solvent. Ditto for the condenser behind the grill. The reciever-drier alongside the condenser must be replaced. That part is easy to get. That leaves the big accumulator on the inner fender. I have not been able to determine if that's still needed when fitting a modern Sanden type compressor with R-134(the only way to go). The old Ford Suction valve also is usually bad, but there is an aftermarket replacement for it. At work, we have done this on heavy equipment with good results. In this case, you would need new hoses made, but that should not be a problem. Maybe we should move this whole thread to the heat/ac forum?